Preparation of transcript (ET) database: All sequences from the appropriate divisions of GenBank (including RefSeq) were extracted. Non-coding sequences were discarded and cDNAs and coding sequences from genomic entries were saved. Sequences and related information (e.g. PubMed links) are stored in the qcGene database (qcGene).

Assembly: Cleaned EST sequences and non-redundant transcript (ET) sequences were combined. Using the Paracel Transcript Assembler Program, sequences were assembled into contigs. TCs are consensus sequences based on two or more ESTs (and possibly an ET) that overlap for at least 40 bases with at least 94% sequence identity. These strict criteria help minimize the creation of chimeric contigs. These contigs are assigned a TC (Tentative Consensus) number. TCs may comprise ESTs derived from different tissues. The best hits for TC's were assigned by searching the TC set against a non-redundant amino acid database(nraa) using BLAT. The top five hits based on score were selected and displayed for each TC.

Caveats: TCs are only as good as the ESTs underlying them; there may be unspliced or chimeric ESTs and thus TCs. There is still redundancy in the TC set because sequences must match end to end and at a certain percent identity to be combined. Directionality of the TCs should not be assumed. Not all TCs contain protein-coding regions.

Plant breeding is the art and science of changing the traits of plants in order to produce desired characteristics. Plant breeding can be accomplished through many different techniques ranging from simply selecting plants with desirable characteristics for propagation, to more complex molecular techniques. ... [more]

Dry Bean are high in starch, protein and dietary fiber, as well as being an excellent source of iron, potassium, selenium, molybdenum, thiamine, vitamin B6 and folate. Dry beans take longer to cook then most pulses, although cooking time can be shortened by soaking dried beans before cooking. Dry Bean is a highly variable species with growth habits ranging from bush varieties growing 20-60cm tall to vine varieties growing 2-3m long. While dry bean varieties range in growth habit all have characteristic green or purple alternate leaves and long pods containing 4-6 kidney-shaped seeds. ... [more]